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Mad’s 21st Century Guide to American Wildlife!

1982. We were 9 years old when this completely warped issue of Mad Magazine came to us hot off the magazine rack at the local drug store. It surely warped our young minds and affected our ideas about humor for years to come.

What we didn’t realize at the time, even as young comic book fiends, was how many of the creators in the “usual gang of idiots” had worked at EC Comics. It would be several more decades before we discovered Angelo Torres work in EC’s science fiction books or his work for Warren’s Creepy, for example. This didn’t become clear until a couple months ago when our local comic book store sold us this nostalgic copy for a dollar. That’s right, the original cover price!

The issue has two features we will share with you today, along with the front and back covers. They focus on the effects of pollution and nuclear reactors. While presented as satire, they certainly seem entirely relevant today, hitting home so closely that they almost aren’t funny. After all, we have read several science journals about new species of micro-organisms that feast on industrial waste, and the nuclear disasters in the Soviet Union and Japan reveal the very real dangers of this power source. Without further ado, enjoy “A 21st Century Guide to American Wildlife” and “Six Minutes Looks at Nucelar Power.”